Rebecca MacKinnon's postings about work, reading, and ideas from 2004-2011.

November 15, 2004

Blogger Corps?

At various sessions of Bloggercon III, I opined that we need to think more about how blogging tools and the blogging process can be used by the non-profit and activist community - not only in the U.S. but around the world. This is not merely a matter of blog-evangelizing to the uninitiated. It's also about adapting blog tools and blogging techniques to the needs of people who want to go beyond online conversations to real-world action. For early blog-adopters, blogging was an end in itself. For the activist community, blogging has to be an effective means to a concrete end.

In the final wrap-up session of Bloggercon III, I suggested that socially conscious members of the blogging community (of all political persuasions) might want to organize a "Blogger Corps." Through it, bloggers could donate their time to help poorly funded activists or non-profit groups to figure out what blogging tools are right for them, set up blogs, and develop effective blogging strategies.

The response to this idea was enthusiastic. A few people have contacted me, asking how they can help. I do not have any detailed master plan. I just came up with the idea at B-con and blurted it out. So I turn to the blogosphere (and the non-profit world) for suggestions: what do you think would be the most effective and efficient way to organize a Blogger Corps? Please share your ideas in the "comments" section.

Blogs and wikis have loomed large in all of my activism for the last three or four years. To abstract it one level and have a tech-squad that supports activists by introducing and supporting these tools seems like a big challenge in coalition building. Would there be three squads -- left-tech, right-tech, and center-tech? No, I think embedded blogging is the way to go, and we each have to find our own assignment by folowing what's in our heart.

Whereas I think blogging for organizations is a good thing, and any online communication for non-profits is a good thing, most blogs aren't exactly a bastion of good web design (and in this sense, I'm not thinking of only visuals, moreso I'm talking in regards to the other important factors). Let's hope these groups continue to seek professional help in regards to the rest of their sites. Blogs are great on their own for individuals, for organizations, they have greater needs. So, to be positive, this effort needs to be only a part of a bigger effort.

I'm on board, and I suggest that the Activist Technology group (http://activist-tech.org) might provide a good 'home' for the project. I set up an email list for discussion, blogcorps@activist-tech.org. To join, send a blank email to blogcorps-subscribe at activist-tech.org.

Great idea, Rebecca. I've been basically doing this very thing one-org-at-a-time for several years. First by setting up websites for nonprofits, and now by advocating furiously for their use of blogs.

When I talk to community-based and state-based NPOs we often come up with some potential uses for blogs that I've never seen done before. For example, a statewide gun control network could use it to publish the first-person stories of people affected by violence all across North Carolina. This would empower the writers to tell their community' stories, show others they're not alone, demonstrate the power of collective voices, and serve as a lobbying tool to push for legislative change.

This is just an example of how the creative implementation of blogs can help organizations and create positive social change.

Also we are hernessing the power of blogs for social change at the local level (where you can really make a difference) at OrangePolitics.org

Gary Chapman and Lodis Rhodes at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin have been exploring applications for technologies for social good with their grad students for several years. You should check out their website - http://www.communitynetworking.org/ - for background papers and links to other folks doing similar work. I'm glad to see more interest in this area - thanks for getting the conversation started.